John 8:12 … The Light of Living (10/20/16)
“I Am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but instead will have the Light of Life.” ~ Jesus (John 8:12)
Note first and foremost that Jesus here speaks to the “Light of the world” – a Light radiating the same Divine Spark that resides in the Soul of every sentient being (see John 1:3-4). Note as well that he does not say that he is the source of that Spark, nor does he say that we do not already have it within us. He is merely saying that he has chosen to live in such a way that this same Spark shines forth through his selfless deeds (unlike the vast majority of humans to this day, whose Spark remains muted and shrouded in the tarnish of superficial desires and self-centered fears) …
And this would explain why Jesus never once says “worship me” in the entire Bible (not once!). Instead, he repeatedly encourages us to follow him – to emulate his Way of Loving; to enliven his teachings on selfless service and self-sacrifice; and thereby to “have the Light of Life” – the Light that was within those followers all along!
And this interpretation is fully supported by the ancient Greek manuscripts, which actually do not have Jesus saying “I am the Light of the world” in this verse, but rather have him saying “I, I am – the Light of the world” (not merely “eimi” – “I am” Strong’s #1510, but “ego eimi” – “I, Iam” Strong’s #1473 + #1510) — meaning that he was not raising himself up above others at all, but was rather explaining to them that he was an embodiment of the “I am” essence within every sentient Soul – and that his selfless actions & unconditional Love were allowing that same Light to shine forth upon all those nearby.
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